A potential immunosuppressant

A compound called IPL 423,323 has been selected, by the biopharmaceutical company Inflazyme pharmaceuticals, to study as a potential new treatment for organ rejection and psoriasis. According to the company, the compound has demonstrated in animal models that it is effective as cyclosporine. It was found that the average time to graft rejection was 15.4 days in animals treated with IPL423.323, was 13.5 days in those treated with cyclosporine, and was 8.5 days in an untreated group.

Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre is helping inflazyme study the compound. Dr. Stephen Chung, a transplant surgeon at the hospital said that the compound may be effective in the prevention of organ transplant rejection without being globally immunosuppressive. He also said that a drug having the ability to selectively inhibit cells responsible for rejection and providing efficacy comparable to cyclosporine would be a major breakthrough. Inflazyme hopes to begin human clinical trials of at least one compound from its IPL423 series by the end of 2000.